HPU MBB Picks Up Big Road Win at Radford, 61-60

• The Panthers made a defensive stop at the buzzer to defeat Radford on the road, 61-60
• Junior Andre Fox made one of two free throws with 19 seconds left to give HPU the lead for good
• High Point hosts Winthrop Saturday at 7 p.m.

RADFORD, Va. — The High Point University men’s basketball team made a defensive stand at the buzzer to pull out a crucial 61-60 victory at Radford Wednesday evening (Feb. 7) at the Dedmon Center in Radford, Va.

Junior Andre Fox made one of two free throws with 19 seconds to go, and the Panthers (12-12, 7-6 Big South) made a defensive stand when freshman Justyn Mutts blocked Ed Polite Jr.’s shot with a couple seconds left to secure the victory over the Highlanders (15-11, 8-5 Big South). The last five games between the two teams have been decided by a total of 10 points.

The game was a four-point game or less from the 12:25 mark until the end of the game. Mutts’ put-back dunk gave High Point a 62-60 lead with 3:35 left and senior Jordan Whitehead’s layup with 1:37 to go gave the Panthers a four-point lead. Radford made a free throw and then grabbed the rebound off the second and Carlik Jones hit a 3-pointer to tie the game at 60 with 1:11 to go to set up the final sequence.

“Overall, it was a great effort from our guys,” HPU head coach Scott Cherry said. “We fought like crazy and came away with a very good road victory. I like the way we are progressing, but we have to keep working on getting better and keep defending the way we did tonight.”

Fox led the Panthers with 14 points and nine rebounds, while sophomore Jahaad Proctor added 11 points and four assists. Whitehead added nine points, including three second-chance buckets. After missing the last two games due to injury, Mutts scored six points and grabbed six rebounds.

The Panthers shot 43.6 percent from the field and held Radford to 36.8 percent shooting. The Highlanders had a slim advantage on the boards, 35-34.

In the first half, High Point led 12-9 before Radford made three 3-pointers in a row to take a six-point lead at 18-12. Later in the half down 25-17, the Panthers went on a 7-0 run to cut the lead to one at 25-24 with 4:58 remaining. Radford went into the break with a 31-28 advantage.

Polite Jr. led the Highlanders with 11 points and 12 rebounds.

The Panthers host Winthrop on Saturday (Feb. 10) at 7 p.m. The game will be broadcast live on the Stadium network.